Utilizing conventional refining methods and processes, only about 30-40% of a single barrel of crude petroleum can be effectively converted (cracked) into gasoline. With the higher demands for carbon-based energy products, such as gasoline, it is desirable to convert a greater percentage of the crude petroleum into gasoline.
To realize a higher yield of gasoline, the less valuable petroleum fractions of the refining process, such as naphta and alkenes (unsaturated hydrocarbons) and bitumen, should be converted to gasoline.
More specifically, it would be desirable to provide a process that enables the conversion of less valuable petroleum fractions of the refining process into high octane gasoline-like mixtures of highly-branched saturated hydrocarbons (alkanes).
Another issue is utilization of newly discovered deposits of natural gas for production of transportation fuels. Indeed, natural gas converted to higher molecular weight hydrocarbons provides a viable alternative to crude oil not only as a source for transportation fuels but also as the source of highly valuable and easily transportable specialty chemical products.
A further issue with utilization of crude petroleum as a source of energy is the results of spills. Oil spills are a source of undesired pollution to the surrounding environment which needs to be cleaned up, especially if the oil spill occurs in a body of water.
One conventional method for cleaning up oil spills in water is to add toxic materials to break up the oil, causing the oil to submerge and disperse. However, although the oil spill may appear gone, the oil has merely gone deeper, thereby making it more difficult to effectively collect and clean-up.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a more efficient and less toxic method of water remediation in the oil drilling industry, in shale processing, in tanker clean-up, and in water processing on land, both of recovered water from oil removal, semi-conductor water treatment, municipal water treatment, mining operations, and toxic remediation of an environmentally damaged site.